Birthday Wrap up

So it has been a week since i turned thirty-nine. Fifty-one weeks before i turn forty. I've been a little busy so i haven't been able to sit down and write like i ought to have done. Promises were not broken, but they were delayed. Now is time to keep them.

My birthday present to me

My Captain Hammer shirt arrived on time, but i did not go to FNM. Instead i wore it the following Friday. The shirt powered me to a 3-1 finish. I let it down. No excuses. I had played once in the 6 weeks preceding FNM and the rust showed. Nor do i think the rust will be cleared anytime soon. Real life keeps on intruding. But the Captain Hammer shirt is awesome and will be in heavy rotation.

My birthday present from Erin

Next up, my birthday present from Erin. In addition to making me tasty spice cake cupcakes, Erin got me the perfect gift. The perfect gift is something the recipient wants, but would never get for himself. In this instance the perfect gift was the LED showerhead. I've written on the glory of this item previously. But let me tell you, it is better in real life. The color of ideal temperature water is blue, once again demonstrating that blue is inherently superior.

Philistine no more

For many years i have proudly borne the honorific: philistine. Most would consider philistine to be a slur or at least a slight, but i disagree. Philistines oppose bohemians. Philistines oppose the avant-garde. These are admirable traits.

Generally speaking philistines are considered to have no regard for art. This is no longer the case for me. I now own my first piece of original art.

I completed the purchase of D. Alexander Gregory's Cursed Scroll. The original painting is now hanging in my living room. It is glorious.

I can no longer proudly call myself a philistine. I am now a patron of the arts, a man of culture if you will.

For those of you unfamiliar with Gregory's work:



Why Cursed Scroll?

Those of you who do not play Magic the Gathering will not understand why owning this particular painting is so desirable. For two years the card bearing this image dominated the game. It is one of the best cards from the golden age of the game.

Shortly after making partner at my old firm i found that the original art was available. I set this as the symbol of accomplishment. At first i was going to make the purchase with the proceeds of one of the big wins Brad kept promising. These big wins, like most of his promises, never materialized.

Then i determined that i'd make the purchase after completing my indenture. (Another story for another time). But in October of last year Mr. Thomas determined that our partnership was at an end and my services were not required in his new organization. Once again my acquisition would be deferred.

In January i started my own office. August was a good month, more importantly it was when i met my own arbitrarily determined goal. I finally decided the time was ripe to make the acquisition. One call to Roanoke, Virgina later and the Cursed Scroll was in the trusted hands of those great men in brown who work for UPS, winging its way to me.
So now the Cursed Scroll is mine. It is a symbol of my success in standing on my own. My new firm is doing well and doing good. With no small amount of shadenfreude i might observe that the old office seems to be a sinking ship. Thanks to all of you who helped me get here.

Later

Bob